Russ distributed a draft Faculty
Senate Recommendation RCSP0202, to remove the Faculty Assembly Constitution
and Bylaws from the Faculty Handbook. Senate passed a motion to do so
at the previous meeting, but it was not clear at that time whether the
action required formal approval from other authorities. It now seems
that it is better to present the change in the form of a recommendation.
The only concern expressed has been that the Constitution and Bylaws
will now need to be maintained and published separately, including presentation
via the intranet. Cindy moved to approve the recommendation and Roxann
seconded. The motion passed.

3.FITs
Report

Russ welcomed Ken Kimble, and asked him
to report on FITs. Ken distributed a set of "Facts & Figures" from the Chronicle of
Higher Education, showing that the average salary for faculty for the
academic year 2001-2 at two-year institutions with rank was $47,834 and
the average at institutions without rank was $49,050. He also distributed
a spreadsheet of AAUP Average Salaries that shows Sinclair's
average salary should be at $55,151 to meet the agreed target. Sinclair
expects to have a $2,000,000 deficit next year, but it does seem likely
that the College will grant a sufficient increase to raise the average
to $55,151 for 2002-3. That would amount to a 4.4% increase in the College
average. Individual raises will be affected by adjustments, including retirement
adjustment, promotional awards, and merit on base. The raise is likely
to be divided between a fixed amount and a percent of current salary.

Ken Melendez and Fred expressed their opinion
that Sinclair's average salary appears higher than it actually is, because
the College's unusually large number of non-tenure-track are excluded from
the calculation. They were also concerned that many faculty understood
the three-year agreement as calling for Sinclair to achieve the salary
target during the three years, not afterwards. Fred suggested that faculty
retiring in the next three years may be particularly hurt by the delay.
Ken Kimble replied that the national data is never available until near
the end of the academic year.

Particularly if faculty receive the expected
bonus for institutional merit, average faculty pay for next year will be
significantly better than this year. It is also likely that there will
be an increase in summer and overload pay, and an increase in the salary
ranges for each rank. The Senate commended Ken Kimble and the rest of the
Faculty Issues Team for their hard work in achieving these increases despite
the economic climate.

4.Monitoring
Task Force Report

Russ reported on the most recent meeting
of the Monitoring Task Force. Topics included the upcoming Constitutional
Vote and a plan for the MTF to meet with the full group of ACFs. The retreat
for current and new Senators to meet with administrators will be scheduled
soon, probably near the end of this quarter.

The Senate Recommendation on including faculty
ratios as a KPI has been approved by the administration, except that the
administration wants to remove the reference to FTE as a metric. Russ distributed
a spreadsheet showing the distribution
of teaching among different types of faculty, and the results are similar regardless of the metric.
Cindy made a motion that Senate agree to remove the reference to FTE, and
the motion passed. Fred distributed "Another
View of the Data," with some additional calculations from Russ's
spreadsheet. He noted that there are other variables that may deserve examination,
including the fact that Special Adjuncts seem to teach significantly larger
classes than do other faculty.

Distance learning compensation was another
topic at the MTF meeting. There will probably not be further action on
the topic until fall.

5.Elections

Susan asked about procedures for the upcoming
divisional elections for Senators. Pam replied that the procedures are
largely the responsibility of the individual divisions, although there
must be an opportunity for nominations from the floor. Whether or not to
allow proxies is a divisional choice.

Pam reminded Senators that she is now accepting
nominations for Vice President, Secretary and Faculty Representative to
President's Cabinet. All are for one-year terms.

6.Open
Forum

6.1.Forrest
asked about the status of the proposed intellectual property policy. Russ
and Pam replied that the proposed policy is now moving forward and is being
reviewed by the College attorney. Senate urged
faculty to be cautious in signing any agreements related to intellectual
property until the new policy is approved.

6.2.Forrest
described a situation in which a faculty member banked hours
during Fall Quarter then was assigned less than a full load during Winter
Quarter. This
made it impossible for the faculty member to use the banked
hours as planned during Spring Quarter. Gary Tucker, DCC representative to Faculty Senate, will bring
this issue to the attention of the Department Chairs Council.

6.3.Russ
distributed the results of the Software Skills survey and asked that Senators encourage
faculty who have not yet participated to do so.